Gramtica Histrica de la Lengua Inglesa

MIDDLE ENGLISH DIALECTS

NORTHERN CHARACTERISTICS

Phonology:
VOWELS.
1. OE // remains //: s w a , t w a (< OE swa, twa)
2. OE /a/+ nasal is not rounded: f r a ( m ) (> OE fram)
3. OE // > eME //: g d e (< OE gd)
4. OE // > ME //: m ry , s i n (< OE myrig, synn)
5. Early weakening of final -e (already in OE):
/-e/ > /-i/ > // >
/-es/ (plural ending) > /-is/ > /-iz /
/-ed/ (past ending) > /-it/
6. Irregular development of gliding before h : common after /a/, rare after /e/ and /o/.
CONSONANTS.
1. In final position and before f r o n t v o w e l s , p l o s i v e s are not palatalized and remain p l o s i v e s :
s w i l k e , m i k e l (< OE swylc, micel).
2. Final and unstressed // (<sc>) > /s/ (<s>/<ss>): loses friction and becomes voiceless:
s u l d e 'should', f l e s s 'flesh'.

Spelling:
1. Diacritic <-i-> to indicate vowel length.

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2. Weakening: /-es/ (plural ending) > /-is/ > /-iz/ represented in various ways: <-is> / <-
ys>/<-ez>.

Morphology:
1. Personal pronouns of Scandinavian origin: a y , e y , a i r e , e i r e , a y m , t h a y , t h e y , t h a i r ,
t h a r , etc.
2. Plural of nouns from strong ones: - e s (< OE -as).
3. Present 3rd person singular in - ( e ) s (cf. OE -e): h a s , p u t t e s , etc. and plural equally in -
(e )s.
4. Predominance of the vowel of Preterite singular (Pret.1) in strong verbs (vocalic verbs)
for both singular and plural.
5. Infinitives without final -n (from late OE).
6. Present participle ending: - a n d e .
7. Past participle without i - / y - ( < ME j() <OE e-).
8. Verb 'to be': present indicative 3rd sg. e s (OE is), plural a r e (OE sind/sindon).

Vocabulary:
Scandinavian (from Old Norse) vocabulary: t i l l 'to', g a n g 'go', a t 'to', t a k e (OE niman).

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MIDDLE ENGLISH TEXTS.

NORTHERN DIALECTS.

Richard Rolle of Hampole (14th c.): T h e B e e a n d t h e S t o r k .

The bee has thre kyndes. Ane es, at scho es never ydill and scho es noghte with thaym at
will noghte wyrke, bot castys thaym owte and puttes thaym awaye. Anothire es, at, when scho
flyes, scho takes erthe in hyr fette, at scho be noghte lyghtly overheghede in the ayere of
wynde. The thyrde es, at scho kepes clene and bryghte hire wyngez. Thus ryghtwyse men at
lufes God are never in ydyllnes; for owthyre ay ere in travayle, prayand or thynkande or redande
or othere gude doande or withtakand ydill mene and schewand thaym worthy to be put fra e
ryste of heven, for ay will noghte travayle. Here ay take erthe, es, ay halde amselfe vile and
erthely, that thay be noghte blawen with e wynde of vanit and of pryde.

T h e Y o r k P l a y o f t h e C r u c i f i x i o n . (pp. 252 & ff. in Burrow and Turville, A B o o k o f

M i d d l e E n g l i s h ).

I Soldier Sir knyghtis, take heede hydir in hye,

This dede on dergh we may noght drawe.
ee wootte youreselffe als wele as I
Howe lordis and leders of owre lawe
Has geven dome at is doote schall dye. 5
2 Soldier Sir, alle are counsaile wele we knawe.
Sen we are comen to Calvarie
Latte ilke man helpe nowe as hym awe.
3 Soldier We are alle redy, loo,
at forward to fullfille. 10
4 Soldier Late here howe we schall doo
And go we tyte ertille.

1 Soldier It may not helpe her for to hone

If we schall any worshippe wynne.
2 Soldier He must be dede nedelyngis by none. 15
3 Soldier anne is goode tyme at we begynne.
4 Soldier Late dynge hym doune, an is he done.
He schall nought dee us with his dynne.

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WEST-MIDLAND CHARACTERISTICS

Phonology:
VOWELS.

1. OE /a/ + /n/ > ME /o/ + /n/ (both in open and closed syllables).
2. OE /o+g/ > /u+g/.
Cf. among ['m] < OE onemang
3. OE /eo/ > ME // (still written <eo>),
[> ME /e/; in other dialects rounding is lost]
OE heorte > ME horte (western areas)
> ME herte (eastern areas)
4. OE // > ME //
5. OE (Mercian) /e/ remains /e/ : w e s , h w e t , etc. (<OE ws, hwt )

CONSONANTS.
1. Loss of voice: /b, d, g/ > /p, t, k/ (when preceded by nasal or liquid).
2. Engind /-d/ in past and past participle > /-t/.

Morphology:
1. OE 3rd personal pronoun plural: object pr. h e m (while t h a y m is found in northern
areas )
2. Present tense:
+3rd person singular in - t h < OE -e (cf. north-west midlands - ( e ) s )
+plural in - ( e ) n .
3. Present participle ending: - e n d e .
4. Past participle often preceded by i - < OE g e -
5. Numerous plural (nouns) in - e n , either inherited from Old English or formed by
analogy.

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WEST MIDLAND TEXTS.

Ancrene Wisse (last third of the 12th century)

Lawman, The Brut (12th century)
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (14th century)
The Pearl (14th century)

A N C R E N E W I S S E ( N U N 'S G U I D E )

Fikeleres beo reo cunnes. e forme beo uvele inoh; e

35 ore ah beo wurse; e ridde ah beo wurst.
(...)e forme
40 ef a mon is god, preise him bivoren himseolf and make
him, inoh reae, et betere en he beo: ant ef he sei wel
oer de wel, heve hit to hehe up wi overherunge. e
oer, ef a mon is uvel ant sei ant de se muche mis et
hit beo se open sunne et he hit ne mahe nanes-weis allunge
45 wiseggen, he ah, bivore e mon seolf makect his uvel
leasse. "Nis hit nawt nu", he sei, "se over uvel as me hit
make. Nart tu nawt te ane i is ing, e forme ne e leaste.
u havest monie feren. Let i-wure, god mon. Ne geast tu
nawt te ane. Moni de muche wurse."

S IR G A W A IN A N D T H E G R E E N K N IG H T

Mony klyf he overclambe in contrayez straunge,

Fer floten fro his frendez fremedly he rydez;
At uche ware oer water er e wye passed, 715
He fonde a foo hym byfore, bot ferly hit were,
And at so foule and so felle at fet hym byhode;
So mony mervayl bi mount er e mon fyndez,
Hit were to tore for to telle of e tene dole.

TRANSLATION (from Tolkien, J.R.R. 1979, S i r G a w a i n a n d t h e G r e e n K n i g h t , P e a r l a n d S i r O r f e o ,

London: Unwin Paperbacks: pp. 32-33:

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 Gramtica Histrica de la Lengua Inglesa

Many a cliff he climbed o'er in contries unknown

far fled from his friends as an exile (without fellowship) he rode.
At every wading or water on the way that he passed (715)
he found a foe before him, but it was something extraordinary (save a few for a wonder);
and so foul were they and fell that fight he must needs.
So many a marvel in the mountains he met in those lands
that 'twould be tedious the tenth part to tell you thereof.

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 Gramtica Histrica de la Lengua Inglesa

EAST-MIDLAND CHARACTERISTICS

Phonology:
VOWELS.

1. OE /a/ + /n/ is not rounded (unlike West-Midland dialect).

2. /o+n/ is unrounded > /a+n/.
3. OE /eo/ > ME /e/; ( rounding is lost) Often written <eo>.
OE heorte > ME horte (western areas)
> ME herte (eastern areas)
4. OE // > ME //
5. Diphthongs are not frequent before /-ht/.

Morphology:

1. OE 3rd personal pronoun plural: object pr. h e m (while t h a y m is found in northern

areas )
2. Present tense:
+3rd person singular in - t h < OE -e (cf. north-east midlands - ( e ) s )
+plural in - ( e ) n .
3. Present participle ending: - e n d e .
4. Past participle preverb i - < OE g e - does not usually appear.
5. Numerous plural (nouns) in - e s . Generalized for all classes of nouns and all cases.

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EAST MIDLAND TEXTS.

Havelok the Dane (12th -13th c.)

er was sorwe, (h)wo-so it sawe!

Hwan e children bi (e) wawe
Leyen and sprauleden in er blod, 475
Havelok it saw, and e(r) bi stod.
Ful sori was at seli knave,
Mikel dred he mouhte have,
For at hise herte he saw a knif,
For to reven him hise lyf. 480
But e k(n)ave at litel was
He knelede bifore at Judas
And seyde: "Loverd, merci nou!
Manrede, loverd, bidd' I you!
Al Denemark I wile you yeve 485
To at forward u late me live;
Here I wile on boke swere
at nevre more ne shal I bere
Ayen e, loverd, shel(d) ne spere,
Ne oer wepne, that may you dere.

TRANSLATION:

There was sorrow, who-ever saw it!

When the children by the wall
Lie and sprawl in their blood,
Havelock saw it, and by there stood.
Full sorry was that poor boy,
Much dread he could have,
For at his heart he saw a knife,
To ravage him his life.
But the boy that was little
He knelt before that Judas
And said: "Lord have mercy now!
Feudal homage, lord, I offer you.
All Denmark I will give you
On condition that thou let me live;
Here I will over the book swear
That never more I shall bear,
Against thee, lord, nor shield nor spear
Nor any other weapon, that may harm you.

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MIDDLE ENGLISH DIALECTS-SOUTHERN.

KENTISH (SOUTH-EAST) CHARACTERISTICS.

Phonology:
VOWELS.

1. OE //> ME //: v e r s t 'first' 1, z e n n e 'sin' 1, c h e r c h e 'church' 22, etc.

2. OE // > ME /e/ (cf. other dialects > /a/): h e d d e 'had' 27, w e s 'was' 29, e t 'that' 1, etc.
3. OE falling diphthongs changed into rising from which we have:
<a> /a/ > /ja/ <ya>/<ia>: d y a d 'dead'
<o> /o/ > /je/ <ye>/<ie> : d y e v e l 'devil' 1, etc.

CONSONANTS.
1. Initially and before /l/ and /r/:
/f/ > /v/: v y n d e 'find' 25, v o l k e 'folk' 39, etc.
/s/ > /z/ (with less regularity): z e n n e 'sin' 1, z a y 'saith'
19, etc.

Morphology:

1. - ( e ) t h in the third person singular of the present (< OE -e).

plural of the present (< OE -a).
2. Present Participle in - i n d e ( < - i n g e ) .
3. Infinitive without - n .
4. Strong Verbs: maintenance of the vowel of the preterite plural or past participle
5. The past participle prefix (OE e-) is kept though weakened: > ME e- /- / j- / i-.
6. The plural of substantives is in - e n (beside -e s ).
7. Third person plural pronouns: Nom. h i , h y , acc. h i s e , h i s , gent. h y r e , dat. h a m .

Vocabulary.

1. Large number of French loan-words.

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KENTISH TEXT:

AYENBITE OF INWYT by DAN MICHEL OF NORTHGATE

An Augustian monk at Canterbury translated into his Kentish dialect in 1340 the S o m m e
d e s V i c e s e t d e s V e r t u e s by Friar Lorens of Orlans. The new title was A e n b i t e o f I n w y t ,
which is 'The Remorse' or more exactly 'The Prick of Conscience'.

Gluttony
Verst zigge we of e zenne of g l o t o u n y e et is a vice et e
dyevel is moche myde y-payd and moche onpayd God. Be
zuych zenne he e dyevel wel grat mite in manne. Huerof
we rede ine e godspelle et God yaf y-leave e dyevlen to
5 guo into e zuyn; and o hi weren ine ham, hise adreynten
ine e ze, ine tokninge et e g l o t o u n s lede lif of zuyn and
e dyevel he y-leave to guo in ham and hise a d r e n c h e ine
e ze of helle and ham to do ete zuo moche et hi tocleve an
zuo moche drinke et hy ham a d r e n c h e .

____________________________________________________
W. Caxton, T h e R y a l l B o o k .- And fyrst we shal saye of the synne of glotonye / whiche is a
vyce that moche pleaseth the devyl, and dyspleaseth to god. By this synne hathe the devyl grete
power in man wherof we rede in the gospel that god gaf lycence to devylles for to entre in to
swyn, and whan they were entred they drowned them in the see. Thys sygnefyeth that the
glotons that lede lyf of hogges and of swyn the devyls have leve to entre in to them & to drowne
them in the see of helle. And maketh them to ete so moche that they breste / & drynke so
moche that they be drowned.
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________

10 Huanne e kempe he his velae y-veld and him halt be

e rote, wel onneae he arist. Alsuo hit is of an et e
dyevel halt be a zenne; and ervore bleeliche he yern to
e rote ase e wolf to e ssepe him vor to astrangli, ase he
dede to Even and to Adam in paradys terestre. et is e vissere
15 of helle et nym ane viss bi e rote and by e chinne. is
zenne moche mispay God.

____________________________________________________
Whan the champyon hath owerthrowen his felowe, he holdeth hym by the gorge by cause
he shold not relyeve. Ryght so is hyt of hym that the devyl holdeth by hys synne in his mete the

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devyl renneth to hys gorge lyke as the wolf dooth to the sheep for to strangle hym. lyke as he dyd
to Adam Eve in paradys terrestre. Thys is the fysshar of helle whiche taketh thy fysshes wyth the
grynnes by the throte / This vyce dyspleseth moche / ... .

SOUTH-WESTERN CHARACTERISTICS.

Phonology:
VOWELS.
1. O.E. / / is most often //,<o>; sometimes / /.
2. O.E. /a/ before nasal is /o/ <o> (m o n , m o n n e , c o n s t , etc.) or <a> /a/ in a n ( d )
3. The O.E. diphthongs have completely disappeared. As in all the South and in the
West-Midlands, the most striking feature is the sound // for which the spellings have
been indicated above: f l o < O.E. flo, s o < O.E. so (ll. 33-34), b o < O.E. bon.
CONSONANTS.

1. Voicing of /f/ to /v/ at the beginning of words is common: <vor> 'for', <vaire> 'fair'

Spelling:
Much influenced by practices of Anglo-Norman scribes.
1. The letter <u> indicates [u] as well as //
2. // is sometimes writen <eo> but most often in the Anglo-Norman manner <o>
(today's commonly <ee>).
3. the sound /v/ is written <v> or <f>.
4. hw- is written <hw-> and also (French influence) <w->
5. the sound // is written <sh->, <sch-> and even <s->
6. /w/ is sometimes written <u> or <v>

Morphology:
1. Nouns: Genitive sg. is in - e s . Dative sg. in - e .
2. The DEFINITE ARTICLE e still has a flexion.
3. Personal pronouns: 1 st sg. i c h , i h or I
3 rd sg. Masc. h e , h i n e , h i n , h i m
Fem. h e ( o ) , h i r e , h i r e
dual G. u n k e r
3rd pl. h i , h e o , h o r e , h e r e , h o m , h e o m
4. Prest. indic.: 2nd sg. in - s t ; 3rd sg. in - ( e ) ; 3 rd pl. also in -( e ) .
5. Pres. subjuntive in - ( e ) , pl. in - ( n )
6. The infinitive is in - e ( n )

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 Gramtica Histrica de la Lengua Inglesa

7. Past participle always preceded by i - (< O.E. ge-).

Vocabulary
Almost purely Germanic. Rare French words .

THE OWL AND THE NIGHTINGALE

Text. Poem of 1794 lines. Written after the death of Henry II in 1189 and before the
accession of Henry III in 1216.

'Ich rede i at men bo are

And more wepe ane singe,
at funde to an hoven-king,
Vor nis no man wiute sunne.
Vor- i he mot, ar he wende honne,
Mid teres and mid wope bete,
at him bo sur at er was swete.
arto ich helpe, God hit wot,
Ne singe ih hom no foliot;
For al mi song is of longinge
And i-mend sumdel mid woninge,
at he groni for his unwrenche;
Mid mine songe ich hine pulte,
at he groni for his gulte.

SING, CUCKOO (13th. century)

S in g , cu cu , n u ! S in g , cu cu !
S in g , cu ccu ! S in g , cu ccu , n u !

Sumer1 is i-cumen2 in;

Lhude sing, cuccu!
Growe sed, and blowe med,
And spring e w<u>de nu.

1 Sumer here means 'spring'. ME lenten had long been understood to mean the original fast and
gradually lost its specific meaning of 'spring'. Because of this, ME writers were compelled to use somer
in this sense since the adoption of spring dates only from the 16th century.
2 ME like OE previously had recognised two periphrasis for the passive, which had no morphological
expression. The locution was 'to be' (ben ) or 'to become (wore ) + past participle.

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 Gramtica Histrica de la Lengua Inglesa

Sing cuccu! 5

Awe blete after lomb,

Lhoud after calve cu;
Bulluc sterte, bucke verte;
Murie sing, cuccu!
Cuccu! cuccu! 10
Wel singes u, cuccu;
Ne swik u naver nu.

if u gest herof to sputinge,

Ich wepe bet ane u singe;
if rit go for ans abak wrong, 15
Betere is mi wop ane i song,
e sume men bo urut gode
And urut clene on hore mode,
Hom longe honne noeles.

TRANSLATION__________________________________________

S in g , cu ck o o , n o w ! S in g , cu ck o o !
S in g , cu ck o o ! S in g , cu ck o o , n o w !

The spring is (=has) come in;

Sing loud, cuckoo!
The seed grows, the mead [mi:d](=meadow) blows,
And the wood springs now.
Sing cuckoo!

The ewe bleats after the lamb,

Lows the calf after the cow;
The bullock starts, the buck farts;
Merrily sing, cuckoo!
Cuckoo! cuckoo!
Thou singst well, cuckoo!
Dost not stop thou ever now.

COMMENTARIES:
- l. 1.

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i-cumen < OE ge-cumen. The prefix, weakened, is kept.

- l.2.
lhude < OE hld. The original sound /hl/ disappeared late. cf. l. 7.
- l.3. (ll. 4, 6, 8)
-(e) for the third person of the present tense as opposed to northern -es.
- l. 6.
lomb < OE lamb. Western rounding.
- l. 8.
Voiceless fricatives > voiced fricatives (not only Kentish).
verte < OE ferte PdE 'fart'
- l. 9.
ME muri(e) < OE myrig > ... > PdE ['meri] <merry> PdE form is coming from Kentish
while here we have the western development.

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